Christian Eriksen discharged from hospital following a ‘successful’ operation

Eriksen, who was given CPR on the pitch during Denmark's game against Finland, has been fitted with a defibrillator implant.

Christian Eriksen in a file photo. (Image: Twitter/@EURO2020)
By Karthik Raman | Jun 18, 2021 | 3 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

Football fans were taken aback when Christian Eriksen was given CPR on the field after collapsing during Denmark’s Euro 2020 opener against Finland. Since then, there have been numerous positive messages about his progress from the Danish camp. According to the latest developments, Eriksen has been discharged from the hospital after receiving a defibrillator implant. This will come as a big relief to his teammates and fans around the world. Initially, when the incident happened, fans around the world were shaken by seeing the incident unfold on TV.

The Inter Milan midfielder collapsing during their opening match against Finland as he went to take a throw-in, was scary to watch at first. After suffering a cardiac arrest during the first half of Denmark’s 1-0 Group B loss to Finland on Saturday, the 29-year-old playmaker had to be resuscitated on the pitch at the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen. The incident stunned football fans, but the midfielder’s recovery will be a piece of welcome news for everyone.

The former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder is on his way home after having an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) fitted. In addition, the midfielder paid a visit to his Denmark teammates. The Danish Football Association has confirmed in a statement that Eriksen has been released from the hospital.

They announced, “Christian Eriksen has been through a successful operation and was today discharged from Rigshospitalet. Today he also visited the national team in Helsinger and from there he will go home and spend time with his family.”

Eriksen also released a statement and thanked everyone for their support. “Thank you for the massive number of greetings; it has been incredible to see and feel,” he added in a statement. “The operation went well and I am doing well under the circumstances. It was great to see the guys again after the fantastic game they played last night. No need to say that I will be cheering them on Monday against Russia.”

On Monday, Denmark take on Russia in their final group B match. During their second group game on Thursday, players and spectators from both Denmark and Belgium showed their support for Eriksen during an emotional minute of applause in the 10th minute of the match, as Eriksen wears the number 10 shirt for Denmark. The Danish team, however, were defeated 2-1. They have now lost both their matches in the group.

Earlier, Denmark football team doctor had revealed that Eriksen had suffered a cardiac arrest and how they treated him after that point onwards. “He was gone; we did cardiac resuscitation, it was a cardiac arrest. We got him back after one defib (defibrillation),” Morten Boesen told a news conference. “The exams that have been done so far look fine. We don’t have an explanation to why it happened.”

At that time, coach Kasper Hjulmand said Eriksen had told him he did not remember much from the collapse. “He would like for us to play on,” Hjulmand said. “He said he feels like he could go out and play again.”

“Christian is in good spirits and it’s a huge relief for the players after all this uncertainty,” Hjulmand added.